I like to read in bed–it’s kind of a nightly ritual for me, and when my booklight died a sad battery-acid-induced death, I was reduced to reading by flashlight when my mate was already asleep. Very pathetic, I know. Lucky for me, Lightwedge has come out with a new booklight system that works really well. Instead of the light coming from a single bulb at the top of your page like most booklights, the Lumos light is an acrylic sheet through which an LED light passes. The cool thing about this is that the sheet illuminates the whole page, instead of just a cone of light hitting it as with a bulb.
The Lumos edition of Lightwedge’s hardback-sized light has some special features as well. It comes with seven different Harry Potter-inspired switchplate covers that are interchangeable, and also features a clip-on tab to hold the light up on the top of a book. It claims to run on its four AAA batteries for forty hours, although I haven’t personally used mine for that long yet. Also, the LED light is supposed to last forever, which is cool for those of us who hate having to replace those tiny booklight bulbs. Their website says that there are two light levels, but I can only seem to find one (which is fine, it’s a good light level).
The only real problem I found with the Lumos light is that it can be rather cumbersome if you’re trying to read in an unconventional position (I like to prop my book up sideways on the bed and read that way sometimes, which is hard to do with this light). You also have to flip the light over every time you finish a page, so it’s definitely a two-handed operation. Basically, if you’re reading on your lap or with the book straight in front of you, it’s great. And as far as light quality goes, it’s the best I’ve ever seen in a booklight.
